Fertilizer-distributer



(No Model.)` 2 Sheets-Sheetl.' S. H. EVERETT.

FERTILIZER DISTRIBUTER. y a

No. 357,376. Patented Feb. 8, 1887.

r llmuhllml 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.) S. H. BVERETT.

PBRTILIZBR DISTRIBUTBR.

No. 357,376. Patented Peb. 8, 1887.

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WU QM @hama/form?? SAMUEL H. EVER-ETT, OF MACEDON, NEV YORK.

FERTlLlpzER-DISTRIBUTER.

fPEOIFICATION forming part o Letters Patent No. 357,376, dated February 8, 1887.

Application filed December 7, 1886. Serial No. 220,929. (No model.)

To all whoml t may concern:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL H. EVERETT, of Macedon, in the county of Wayne and State of New York, have invented certain vnew and useful Improvements in Fertilizer-Distributers, of which theV following is a specification.

My invention relates to fertilizer-distributers; and it consists in a novel construction of the same, whereby I am enabled to rotate the feeding caps or, shells within the box or hopper from below and yetsecure an unobstructed central discharge or outlet.

Hcretofore it has been com mon to mount the feeding cap or shell upon a central post or standard, supported by a frame beneath the hopper, and to rotate a feed wheel or disk extending beneath and outside of the cap, and it has been suggested that the cap might be rotated instead of the disk or wheel. It has also been proposed to secure the cap to the lower end of a rod or stein extending up through the hopper and to rotate it by gearing at the top of the hopper. f The first of these plans is objectionable in that the center of the outlet-space is obstructed by the supporting post or stem and its frame, and the second plan is undesirable because of the inconvenience of arranging the driving-gear, and from the fact that the stem passing down through the material packs the same and is retarded thereby. These difficulties I overcome by my construction, and at the same time Ilessen the cost of manufacture.

In the accompanying drawings, which show one of a series of distributers commonly used together, Figure lis a perspective View of my improved device, the hopper or box being taken away to show the interior; Fig. 2, 'a transverse Vertical section through the same; Fig. 3, a side elevation, and Fig. 4 a bottom plan View7 illustrating the gearing; Fig. 5, a perspective view of the parts separated.

I wish to state at the outset concerning the gearing that I do not restrict myself tothe preciseform'and arrangement shown, but propose to use any suitable gear by which the feeding-cap may be rotated from below without requiring the driving-shaft to pass beheath the outlet or discharge opening.

In the drawings, A indicates a feed box or hopper, which may be made of wood or metal, and of any approved form and dimensions, the bottom of which is formed by one or more metal plates, B, it being preferred to employ a separate plate for eac-h distributer, though, obviously, two or more may be combined, if desired. With this explanation I shall proceed to describe the device in its preferred form-that is, with a separate plate, B, for each distributer. As shown in Figs. l and 2, each plate B is formed with a circular depression, a, encircling and concentric with a circular opening, b, through which the material escapes as it is fed or forced out.

Extending downward from the bottom or under side of the depression or cup a is an annular iiange or collar, c, the interior of which is somewhat larger than the central opening, b, and which constitutes an axle for an annular gear-wheel, C, of the particular form and construction shown in Fig. 5. Referring to said Fig. 5, it will be seen that wheel C con` sists of an inner ring, d, which is of an internal diameter corresponding with opening b, and of an external diameter to iit nicely within the neck or collar c, and an outer ring, e, provided with gear-teeth f and connected with ring clby arms g. Under this construction the interior or ring d constitutes a continuation of the central opening or outletb, and the working of ringdwithin the collar ckeeps the wheels C always in proper position and in proper relation to the other parts.

Rising from the inner face of ring dis an arm, h, which bends over at the top, as shown in Fig. 5, and terminates in a vertical stud or stem, t', concentric with the opening b and wheel C, which arm in turn is provided with lateral studs j. These small studs j may be cast upon the stem or stud i, or they may be formed bythe ends of a pin passing through the stud, as found expedient.

D is what I tcrm-a feeding shell or cap,

made of metal, of oval form in plan view,

rounded on the top, cut away about half its height on one side, and formed with an inwardly curved or turned wall, 7c, which extends from one end ofthe cutaway side inward to a point near the center of the cap or shell.y In

other words, the wall 7c curves inward and conforms to the line of the central opening, b, leaving between its outer face and the interior wall of the shell or cap a space or passage through which material may pass to the outlet b. The shell or cap is provided with an opening, Z, in its top, having two lateral enlargements, Z, and between these enlargements there is formed at each side of the main openingZ a small stud, in, which studs comein contact with the lugs j when the cap is turned a short distance upon stud i', and thus serve to prevent it from turning farther independently of the stud andits supportingarm. The parts being thus put together, it will be seen that if wheel C bc rotated it will carry with it the shell or cap D, which, traveling in a horizontal plane over the bottom ofthe depression a, with the elevated edge of its cut-away side foremost, rides over tnc material in said depression, and, by reason of the curvature of its inner wall and of wall 7J, directs said material into the outlet-opening Z), through which it falls tothe delivery-tubes, and thence to the ground.

If the box or hopper be made with sides or walls inclining directly to the depression a, the material will find iis way thereto without assistance; but it' used in a hopper with parallel sides-such as shown in the drawings*- some additional device may be found necessaryto deliver certain classes of material to the depression. For this purpose I attach to the cap or shell D, or form thereon, an arm, E, curved or inclined forward at its outer end in the direction of rotation of the cap. This arm serves both to agitate or loosen the material and to draw or work it inward to the depression a.

It is obvious that other means may be provided for accomplishing this result-11s, for instance, a rotary scraper independent of the feeding cap or shell-and also that in many cases or with various materials no such provision will be necessary.

Motion is imparted to all the distributers of theseries by means of bevel-pinions F, secured upon a shaft, G, and meshing with the bevel portion. p ol' combined bevel and straight pinion II, the straight teeth q of which mesh with those of the wheels C of the respective distribnters.v The double pinions are carried by vertical stems or axles i'.

The rate of rotation may of course be varied as desired by properly proportioning the gearing. y

In the foregoing description I have referred to a form of shell or cap already well known and in extensive use, but I do not mean to be understood as limiting myself to that precise form, as any form of cap will answer which combines in itself the properties of a cover or guard for the outlet-opening, a side inlet or passage through which material may enter and pass beneath the shell to an outlet, and a curved wall or walls to direct the material to said outlet. So, too, the form of wheel C may be varied more or less without departing from my invention. Thus, instead of forming the neck c upon the lower side of depression a, the wheel C may be formed with a central collar to extend up into the opening b, thus forming ajournal or axle for the wheel without the aid of iiange or neck c, and simplifying the manufacture slightly at the same time.

I prefer the construction shown and described, however, because it does not present the moving end of the hub or inner ring, d, of the wheel to the material within the bottom of the depression a, and does not permit the entrance of material between the moving parts.

It is not essential to form the bottom B with a depression for the cap or shcll,thongh ad visable to do so. The arm h, which supports the cap or shell D, is placed at the opposite side of the ring d of wheel Ct'romthat at which the material enters the ring, so that there is no obstruction of the feed by said ring. Upon the upper face of plate B," adjacent to the edges of the socket or depression a, I place upwardly-projecting arms s s, which curve over toward the revolving cap D, as shown in Figs. l, 3, and 5. As the cap D is rotated, the arm E, carried thereby, (or it may be one or more separate arms,) acting in conjunction with the arms s, serves to crush or pulverize the material. g

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is- 4'1. The combination, in a fertilizer-distributer, of a box or hopper, a bottom therefor provided with a discharge opening or outlet, a gear-wheel below the bottom having an open center and provided with an arm extending upward through the discharge-opening, and a cap or shell mounted upon and carried by said arm, said cap being adapted to cover the outlet,and provided with an opening through its side for the passage of material to the outletopening.

2. A fertilizer distributer consisting of a plate having a discharge 'opening or outlet, an annular gear-wheel beneath said plate and encircling the outlet, an arm carried by said wheel and extending up through the outletopening, and a cap or shell carried by said arm, and serving both to cover the opening and to direct the material thereto.

3. In combination with hopper-bottom B, having opening b, gear-wheel C, encircling said opening and provided with arm 7a, and cap or IOO IIC]

shell D, mounted upon and arranged to rotate with said arm as the wheel C is turned.

4. In combination with hopper-bottom B, provided with depression a and outlet b, an annular gearwheel beneath and encircling said outlet, an arm, lz, extending upward from said gear-wheel through outlet b, and a shell or cap, D, substantially such as described and shown, carried by arm h.

5. In combination with hopper-bottom B, having flange or collar c, annular gear-Wheel C, consisting of connected rings d and e and provided with arm h, and feeding cap or shell D, carried by said arm above the hopper-bot tom.

6. In combination with hopper-bottoni B, provided with depression a, outlet b, and neck or fiange c, annular gear-wheel C, provided with arm h, and shell or cap D, secured upon said arm.

7. In combination with a hopper-bottom having an outlet-opening, an annular geari wheel beneath the bottom encircling said outlet, an arm extending from said wheel upward through the outlet, a feeding cap or shell carried by said arm, and a curved or inclined arm carried by the cap and serving to draw material inward toward the same.

8. In combination with hopper-botto1n B, having outlet b, gear-wheel C, having arm h, provided with stud t', having lateral projections j, and cap or shell D, provided with openings Z Z and studs m.

9. In combination with a hopper-bottoni having outlet b, an annular gearwheel beneath the hopper encircling said outlet, and having an arm extending upward through the same, a feeding cap or shell carried by the arm, a driving-shaft provided with bevel-pinion F, and a combined straight and bevel pinion interposed between the bevel-pinion F and the Wheel C to transmit motion froni the former to the latter. Y

l0. The combination, with a hopper-bottom having a discharge opening or outlet, of an annular gear-wheel below said bottoni encircling the outlet, and provided with an arln eX tending upward through the discharge-opening, and a feeding or discharge device carried by said arm, the outlet-opening being free from obstruction of anykind.

In witness whereof I hereunto set iny hand inthe presence of two witnesses.

SAMUEL H. EVERETT.

Witnesses:

WILLIAM W. DODGE, WALTER S. DODGE. 

